Britt Robertson

Hong Kong's retail resurgence continues to attract investors. According to JLL's latest Property Market Monitor, net take-up in Hong Kong's overall office market reached 68,800 sq. ft in November 2017, with an average monthly rent of HKD 71.7 per sq. ft, up 0.3 percent from October 2017. In the Grade A office market, the overall vacancy rate fell to 4.8 percent from 4.9 percent in October.  doha house The financial services industry's expansion requirements continued to drive leasing demand. Ping An Bank reportedly leased 13,900 square feet at One Exchange Square in Central, expanding from offices in the Bank of America Tower, while LGT Group reportedly leased 27,800 square feet at Two Exchange Square. Rents in Central increased by 0.3 percent month over month, owing to a 0.6 percent increase in Grade A3 offices, while the vacancy rate remained below 2%. On the back of restricted vacancy within the Millennium City portfolio, rents in Kowloon East increased for the...

Technology advances in areas such as big data analytics, machine learning, and artificial intelligence, according to a new report by real estate consultant JLL, are transforming industries around the world, providing insights and opportunities for those in the vanguard, while technology laggards risk becoming obsolete.  housing But the question now is how much of an impact these technological advancements are having on the real estate industry. While location is still very important in real estate, developments in property technology (PropTech) have changed the game. Connectivity and accessibility are becoming increasingly important market considerations, and this trend is only expected to continue. Late adopters risk being left behind, according to George Thomas, JLL Asia Pacific's Chief Information Officer. "As more investors, developers, and landlords adopt more PropTech features and services, those who do not implement even the most basic technological services will ...

Hong Kong's property investment market continues to record new highs in January 2018, according to JLL's monthly Property Market Monitor, owing to robust worldwide investor demand. In January, a total of four en-bloc office buildings were sold for HKD 14.8 billion, a 17 percent increase over the previous year.  qatar properties for sale The most attention was drawn to the en-bloc sale of 18 King Wah Road, a new Grade A office property that set a new record for the largest office transaction in Hong Kong East. Decentralization remained a popular issue among office renters in the leasing market. Tenant decentralization and consolidation requirements fueled demand in Hong Kong East and Kowloon East, where leasing activity was concentrated. In January, the whole market had a net take-up of 209,900 square feet. As some tenants sought space to expand, net absorption in Central surpassed 33,000 square feet. "The rising difference between rents in Central and emerging core...

According to a new report by Savills, the real estate consultancy, Tokyo is the top world city for investors seeking "above-gilts cash" from residential land, ahead of New York.  house for sale The firm notes that "rental yields in Tokyo look highly attractive in comparison to the extremely low returns available on Japanese government bonds." (High-grade, low-risk government bonds are referred to as gilts.) On Savills' rankings, Tokyo came out ahead of perennial favorite New York, followed by Paris, London, and Singapore. The "surprise" of the report, according to the company, was Tokyo. "Tokyo now appears to be a surprising but compelling 'buy' for investors, with a gross yield of +3.9 percent over government bond prices," according to the study. Savills contrasted the gross rental income received by investors in each city "net of gilts," resulting in a calculation of "residential yields across its world cities, exclud...

The Camden Borough Council has given its approval for Google's new UK headquarters in King's Cross.  doha sale Instead of the Googleplex in California, the London location will be one of the company's main headquarters. Other technology firms are expected to flock to the site, which would boost rents in King's Cross Central, a 67-acre redevelopment site. In June, Google UK managing director Dan Cobley said, "Building our new headquarters in King's Cross is good for Google and good for London." "We're committed to the United Kingdom and to helping to revitalize this historic region." The 330-meter structure is taller than the 310-meter Shard, one of Western Europe's tallest structures, and sits on a 2.4-acre site that cost the company £650 million, according to the Telegraph. The corporation has moved away from leasing overseas offices and now owns properties in Paris, Dublin, and London. According to the Telegraph, the King's Cross si...

The $3.4 billion Baha Mar resort in the Bahamas will change the nature of the Caribbean resort industry when it opens next year. The project, which includes more than 2,200 rooms and the region's largest casino, is large enough to attract visitors from other islands and compete with the Atlantis, the Bahamas' current 3,000-room mega-resort.  villa qatar Baha Mar will need to draw new customers and expand a market that is still recovering from the 2008 financial crisis. President Tom Dunlap told WPC News, "This actually makes the entire destination be better known as a destination, not just a single resort spot." "We compete with Las Vegas and Macau casinos with our 100,000 square foot casino. This is a casino that is truly a destination. It's more than a convenience." China is Baha Mar's not-so-secret arm. The project is backed by a $2.5 billion loan from China's Export-Import Bank, and the general contractor is China State Construction and Engin...

February is the month when many people's thoughts shift to Valentine's Day. Many nations throughout the world currently observe the holiday. And here are the top 05 venues to celebrate it, in my view...  plot for sale No. 5: BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA - Buenos Aires is a South American European metropolis. The streets are a continual, vibrant swirl of Latin American passion and la buena vida...and the streets are the live. Buenos Aires is a nonstop celebration of life, noise, and bustle. It is, of course, the birthplace of the tango, the world's most passionate, provocative, and downright sexual dance, which is performed both on the streets and in nightclubs. (There are also hundreds of studios where you may study it there.) Barbecue from South America (Argentine meat!) is popular, but so are a dozen other regional dishes. With massive sculptures and monuments, spacious boulevards, and avenues lined with sidewalk cafés, the architecture is a vibrant combination of European...

According to a new analysis by Wealth-X and Sotheby's International Realty, owner-occupied residential properties hold almost US$3 trillion in private wealth, which is more than India's GDP. There are 211,275 ultra-high net worth (UHNW) persons in the globe, defined as those with net assets of $30 million or more, and 79 percent of them own two or more homes.  property New York City, London, and Hong Kong are among the most popular destinations for luxury residential real estate, but specialized spots such as Lugano, the Hamptons outside of New York City, and rural places throughout the world are also growing in appeal. According to the Wealth-X and Sotheby's International Realty Global Luxury Residential Real Estate Report, the ongoing shift in the wealth creation cycle from the West to the East, as well as the growing importance of intergenerational wealth transfers, will have significant implications on the luxury residential real estate market, with a focus on new...

CAPETOWN, SOUTH AFRICA – Capetown is a paradigm for not only how diverse peoples (and there are many different races and nationalities here) can live in peace, but also how they can work together to create a lively international metropolis. In one of the brilliant red double-decker buses, take a sightseeing trip. Take a stroll down to the beautiful beaches. Visit the Boulders Penguin Colony to meet a few thousand of the squirmy residents. Try some of the new African, Indian, or European cuisines. For some spectacular vistas, go up to Cape Point's hills. Greenmarket Square, for example, has a vibrant street market. Take the cable car to the summit of Table Mountain, where the genuine essence of Africa's southernmost continent is revealed.  for sale qatar HONG KONG, CHINA – Business is business in Hong Kong, whether it's at one of the city's tens of thousands of street-side food stalls or in one of the city's skyscrapers. As a result, there is a distinct excitement ...